Posted by Damozel | Why isn't this story all over the news? Why are we talking about anything else? It's the very same weekend when Bush blandly confirmed that oh yeah, he knew all about it? Why aren't he and Cheney and the whole crew about to be impeached? Have the wheels of justice really rusted to a complete stop? Are we really so cynical that we're past being shocked or thinking there's anything we can do about this?
Not all of us. Digby writes:
I thought I was long past the point of being shocked at anything the Bush administration did. They suspended the constitution after 9/11 and set forth a series of legal opinions that said the president can do anything he deems necessary to "protect the country." Once you truly absorb that fact, it's hard to be emotionally affected by anything else you learn.
But I was wrong. This shocks me. The president of the United States casually admits on television that he approved of his national security team personally deciding which specific torture techniques should be used against prisoners....
There was a time when the Village clucked and screeched about "defiling the white house" with an extra marital affair or hosting fund raising coffees. I would say this leaves a far greater stain on that institution than any sexual act could ever do. They did this in your name, Americans. (Digby)
My hero, John Conyers, has invited several key players to attend a hearing on the use of torture.
Conyers, following up on the reports in the last couple of weeks about the role of top administration officials in authorizing the use of "enhanced interrogation" techniques including waterboarding, has invited a slew of current and former officials to testify at the hearing. Among those invited are former Attorney General John Ashcroft, former CIA Director George Tenet, former Undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith, Chief of Staff to the Vice President David Addington, and former Assistant Attorney General Daniel Levin, who headed up the Office of Legal Counsel for a brief time.
Says Conyers: “New and troubling allegations suggest that the decisions on torture came from the highest levels of government. These reports, if true, represent a stain on our democracy. The American people deserve to hear directly from those involved.” (TPM)
I'm guessing that all those invited to this select party will find that their engagement calendars are already full.
Digby again:
There was a time when a scene like this would have been so outlandish that people would have said "it sounds like some kind of Oliver Stone conspiracy." I have a sneaking suspicion that old Ollie is furiously working on rewrites for his Bush Biopic this week-end. But I doubt even his fertile imagination is going to find it easy to make a scene play in which all the top players in the Bush administration casually decide which torture techniques to use that day. Its something out of a bad spy novel --- or a nightmare. (Digby).
Where, oh where, is the media coverage? The public outrage? I can't believe what I see when I look at the top stories in various publications: whereas the 'outrage' over Obama's 'ill-chosen words' is mighty; nobody seems to give a damn the the current president of the United States just admitted that he not only knew but also approved of the use of torture.
OTHER BN-POLITICS POSTINGS
The Chinese and the West: Talking at Cross-Purposes?
Another Whistle Blower Says Telecom has Domestic-Spying System
Bush's Newest Domestic Spying Program
Sources Tell ABC News: Bush Administration Officials Participated in War Crimes
The Administration's Secret Plans for A Lasting US Presence in Iraq
I couldn't agree more. I haven't said this at any point in the last seven years, but this is an impeachable offense. I don't expect much out of the MSM, but I'm legitimately confused why this story is not making banner headlines in every major paper.
But, you know, we have to talk about how Obama hates regular folk. And whether Hillary is going to drop out. Those are much more important stories.
I've brought this up a few times in DC's posts, but once again, Glenn Greenwald on salon.com has done a fantastic job covering this story and the FISA story, as well as hammering the media for their non-coverage of those stories.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/
Posted by: Adam | April 13, 2008 at 10:03 PM